Once upon a time in Chicago, I met every attorney who went on a job interview via Evers Legal Search. Either at my office, or mostly over lunches and at coffee shops, I sat down in-person with hundreds of you. When our practice went national about 20 years ago, I also used Skype or a simple phone conversation as primary candidate screening tools. Now the standard interface for a first candidate interview or client meeting is Microsoft Teams, of course.
The pros of video screening in my line of work are many. It allows me to compete nationally on an even playing field, as virtual meetings are the most common and accepted business practice among search firms. It allows me to work from anywhere. And most importantly, it creates time efficiencies that ultimately benefit our clients.
But something truly meaningful is getting lost. I confess that I do not feel as personally connected to as many of you as I once did. Except for a couple of after-placement congratulatory lunches, I did not meet the lawyers who we placed in 2022.
This new reality coincides with an exciting headline: We hit 400 this year! Since opening in 1997, Evers Legal Search has now placed 400 attorneys into new positions. I follow everyone’s career developments via LinkedIn and have been fortunate to maintain relationships with many of you. But my second confession is that I have lost touch with many others. I am determined to remedy that and reconnect with as many of you as possible in 2023. Earlier this month, I sent an email to all of our past placements to begin that process.
But I appreciate your help. If you are someone who interviewed through me, whether we placed you or not, I encourage you to kindly send me a note at [email protected]. Let me know how you are doing and if you are open to taking a phone call from me, simply to reconnect and catch up.
Or let’s do lunch! And if so, I hope a Capital Grille is convenient. That is where I met with Matt Broad, our featured general counsel in this issue of eNews. Matt is with Darden Restaurants, the parent company for Capital Grille and many other well-known eateries. A real conversation over a meal at a great restaurant still beats a laptop camera.